Net Pens

Published on: March 26, 2024

Cooke Aquaculture Pacific Drops Appeal

Cooke Aquaculture Pacific has decided to withdraw its appeal against the cancelation of its net pen leases at Rich Passage and Hope Island. The move was announced by Washington state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on March 15^th, 2024.

Hilary Franz, the Washington Commissioner of Public Lands, announced the dismissal of the appeal, emphasizing that state residents should mark this day as the definitive conclusion to hazardous and harmful net pens in the region.

“Cooke Aquaculture has finally realized that its fight to continue to put our waters and salmon at risk was futile. And as the courtroom battles and corporate tantrums fade away, we’re left with a Washington with cleaner waters, stronger habitats, and healthier salmon,” Franz said.

Published on: November 22, 2022

Washington State Bans Commercial Net-Pen Fish Farming

by Joseph Stacey

State Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz announced on Friday, November 18^th that commercial net-pen farming of finned fish will end in the waters of Washington state. Of note, net-pen fish farming has been banned in Alaska, Oregon, and California. Canada is calling for companies to phase out the practice before 2025.

The executive order came after the termination of the Cooke Aquaculture’s leases near Hope Island and Rich Passage. In 2016, Cooke Aquaculture bought up all net-pen operations in Washington state.

“This is a critical step to support our waters, our fishermen and women, our tribes and the native salmon that we are so ferociously fighting to save and have so little time to do so,” Franz said.

Published on: August 22, 2017

Atlantic Salmon Net Pen Spill, Solar Eclipse Suspected

by Joseph Stacey

If you happen to be fishing in the south Bellingham Bay area near Cypress Island today, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife would like your help cleaning up a large Atlantic salmon spill. A net pen which held approximately 305,000 Atlantic salmon, broke over the weekend, releasing thousands of farm fish into the waters surrounding the San Juan islands.

In a statement released this morning by Cooke Aquaculture Pacific, a division of Icicle Seafoods, Inc., Cooke speculated that “exceptionally high tides and currents coinciding with this week’s solar eclipse” caused the damage. Cooke estimates several thousand salmon escaped following “structural failure” of a net pen.

“It appears that many fish are still contained within the nets,” Cooke said in the statement. “It will not be possible to confirm exact numbers of fish losses until harvesting is completed and an inventory of fish in the pens has been conducted.”